


Let Me Sleep All Night in Your Soul Kitchen

by rumbleroarsslumberingcubs



Category: The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: I just want these babies to be happy and in love, Klaus Hargreeves & David "Dave" Katz During Vietnam, Klaus Hargreeves Deserves Better, Klaus Hargreeves Needs A Hug, M/M, Period-Typical Homophobia, Softie David "Dave" Katz
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-17
Updated: 2020-09-17
Packaged: 2021-03-08 04:48:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,282
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26510020
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rumbleroarsslumberingcubs/pseuds/rumbleroarsslumberingcubs
Summary: Klaus and Dave help each other to feel worthy of love. They protect each other and discuss the past damage done by their fathers. When anyone messes with Klaus, Dave isn't afraid to step in.
Relationships: Klaus Hargreeves/David "Dave" Katz
Comments: 14
Kudos: 127





	Let Me Sleep All Night in Your Soul Kitchen

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, y'all. So happy you're back (or here for the first time!). This story kind of just happened, so I hope everything is accurate and makes sense haha.  
> TW: Mentions of a minor being cooerced into sexual situations, period typical homophobia  
> Hope you're all staying safe!

Klaus, thrilled to have one glorious night free to do whatever he wanted, realized awkwardly that he had absolutely nothing to wear.

He meant that in the literal sense, considering the fact that he was dropped into a war zone just a week ago with only the shirt on his back and a suitcase time machine.

It wouldn’t be the end of the world to wear his uniform, but he was kind of hoping to get laid and he definitely needed something a bit flashier to make that happen.

When Klaus finally looked up, he noticed Dave, the soldier he met on the bus, staring at him with an amused smile.

They’d been getting chummy over the short time Klaus had been in country, and unfortunately, the dark-haired man could feel himself falling hard for the sweetest, most innocent all-American boy he’d ever seen.

Yeah, that was only going to end in heartbreak. But that didn’t mean he couldn’t flirt a bit.

Hey, a little flirting never killed anybody.

“Like what you see, Davie?” Klaus shot with a wink and the other man seemed to startle, turning bright red at the insinuation.

“I—uh—” Dave began to stammer but Klaus simply smiled.

“I’m just teasing,” he interrupted genuinely, “I just like to see you squirm.”

Dave laughed before letting out a shaky breath. Klaus, worried that he’d gone too far, decided he would back off a bit with the jokes and innuendos.

Dave was his only friend and frankly, Klaus hated the idea of scaring him off. Klaus was rather fond of him already.

“You’re wearing _that_? To the bar?” the younger soldier asked amusedly.

Klaus looked down to see his dirty uniform pants and shrugged.

“I pack light?” he tried, before teasing, “My hippie, bohemian lifestyle calls for the ability to drop everything at a moment’s notice.”

“It was _one_ time I asked if you were a hippie!” Dave cried out, rolling his eyes, “I get it, I’m just some naïve little baby from Small Town, USA.” 

“And it’s absolutely adorable,” Klaus replied, booping Dave’s nose before he could get away.

The resulting giggle from the younger man made Klaus swoon. Goddamn it, could he get any cuter?

“You wanna borrow something?” Dave offered hesitantly.

Klaus softened, heart beating fast in his chest.

“Like, to wear?” Klaus asked, uncharacteristically tentative.

Dave nodded with an easy smile and it struck him, not for the first time, how genuinely _nice_ Dave was. Far too nice for a fucked up, traumatized asshole like himself.

And (probably important to mention) far too straight, as far as Klaus knew.

“Yes, ‘like, to wear,’” Dave teased, “Why not?”

Klaus shrugged before joking self-deprecatingly, “Probably because you’re built like a fucking Greek god and I’m built like a starving heroin addict.”

Dave looked shocked and somehow offended? Klaus couldn’t understand why, he’d literally just compared him to a god.

“I think you’re handsome,” Dave said quietly with a nervous smile and Klaus swallowed hard, realizing suddenly that Dave was actually offended on Klaus’ behalf.

Handsome. No one in in his whole life had ever called him handsome.

Hot? Sure. Sexy? Of course. Fuckable? Probably too much.

But handsome?

No. That wasn’t a word anyone had ever associated with him.

It was too pure, too _kind_. It was a word that had no implication that someone expected something from you.

It was…nice.

“Thanks, Davie. What a little sweetie you are,” Klaus replied as casually as he could, though he was completely flustered.

“Whatever,” Dave said quietly with a small shrug, though his cheeks were slowly getting redder and redder, “I have a shirt that would look nice on you.”

“I think wearing _no_ shirt would look best on me,” Klaus responded with a smug smirk, “But, I mean, I could never say no to you, darlin’.” 

Dave grinned and it washed over Klaus like a ray of sunshine. He’d never felt that way about anyone before.

“Here,” Dave offered, tossing the shirt Klaus’ way and chuckling when he failed to catch it.

Klaus quickly picked the shirt up with a sheepish smile and held it up to examine it.

“I—if you don’t like it, just tell me,” Dave mumbled immediately, “I just think the colors would look nice with your eyes.”

“I mean…” Dave trailed off, looking terrified, “not to sound queer or anything.”

The words hurt, Klaus hated to admit it, but he also understood the era he was in. Nobody wanted to seem gay, let alone actually _be_ gay.

Dave was covering for himself in case Klaus was going to judge him.

“Stop panicking, Dave. I think it’s groovy. Thanks,” he offered before adding carefully, “I think it’s okay to sound ‘queer,’ by the way.”

Dave was definitely surprised by his comment and it was hard to miss the wave of relief that clearly washed over the younger soldier. Still, he chose not to address that part of Klaus’ response.

“Good. I’m glad you like it,” Dave admitted genuinely, “It suits you.”

“Yeah?” Klaus confirmed, looking down at his borrowed shirt with a giddy little grin.

“Hell yeah,” the younger soldier agreed before donning a mischievous smile, “Now let’s steal you some pants from Johnson.”

“Davie!” he gasped, hand clutched to his chest in faux horror, “You tricky little minx!”

“See,” Dave seemed to brag, “I’m not just some goody two shoes after all.”

“Oh, I see that,” Klaus said, taking a drag from his cigarette and giggling, “You better be careful, I hear there’s a warrant out for your arrest.”

“Ah, well. You’re my accomplice!” Dave shot back with a gorgeous little laugh, “If they catch me, I’m taking you too. We go down together!”

“Wow, Dave,” Klaus replied, wiping away a fake tear, “I thought I meant more to you than that!”

“Oh, it’s only because I can’t live without you,” Dave shot back, wiggling his eyebrows, “Now put these pants on!”

“Mmm, yes sir,” Klaus shot back with an obscene moan as he took the offered pants.

Dave didn’t even look embarrassed; he was too wrapped up in the little world he and Klaus were creating.

He actually seemed a bit excited by the flirty jokes, though Klaus knew it was entirely possible he was making that part up in his mind.

“You’re ridiculous,” Dave laughed before admiring Klaus in his new outfit.

“Hmm. Much better on you than on Johnson,” he decided before approaching Klaus and fixing his collar.

Dave’s fingers accidentally brushed over Klaus’ neck and he shivered, suddenly feeling intoxicated despite being completely sober.

“Maybe,” Klaus whispered, his head spinning just from the proximity, “But I bet this shirt looks much better on you.”

Dave shook his head, eyes suddenly locking with Klaus’.

“Nah. You look gorgeous,” Dave breathed out, as if in a daydream, before he could panic and change his mind.

Klaus kissed him.

It was quick and chaste and truthfully, the older soldier was hardly sure it happened at all.

Dave swayed a bit and brought his fingers to his lips in disbelief. He didn’t say or do anything for a whole minute and in that time, Klaus wanted to dig a ditch and throw himself into it.

Then, amazingly, Dave kissed him back.

Soft and slow, timid and emotional, the kiss was beautiful and poetic and fragile.

Klaus didn’t even let himself breathe he was so scared of ruining it.

The moment felt so delicate Klaus was terrified. Yet he was so damn happy he wasn’t sure what to do with himself.

“Is it okay that I kissed you?” Klaus asked after Dave pulled away.

“Is it okay that I liked it?” was the younger soldier’s soft reply.

“Very okay,” Klaus agreed eagerly, and Dave chuckled nervously.

“We should go. You know, to the bar,” Dave said before Klaus could go in for another kiss, “You got all dressed up, after all.”

The older man grinned, “Yeah, and thank god for that.”

Dave shook his head and laughed, “What do you mean by that?”

“Well, apparently it made me so irresistible you decided to kiss me,” Klaus replied giddily.

“You’re always irresistible, Klaus,” he admitted genuinely, causing the older soldier to blush.

“Says you,” Klaus shot back.

Dave looked away, shy and incredibly pleased with himself.

“I gotta tell you, Davie,” Klaus admitted as they started to leave for the only bar within walking distance, “I was so sure that you were completely straight.”

They made sure to whisper, considering the fact that they were currently living during the 1960s and neither one of them particularly wanted to have the shit beat out of them.

Still, Klaus was curious.

“I’m just trying to protect myself,” Dave explained defensively, “But you, you’re so free. I mean, I didn’t _know_ that you were interested in guys for sure, but you have this carefree attitude like you don’t even give a shit what people think of you. I wish I was like that.”

Klaus smiled sadly; being from the future did have its advantages.

“It’s okay to care what people think,” Klaus comforted gently, “We all do. Even me. But it’s also important that you know there’s nothing wrong with you. There’s nothing to fix. The only reason to hide is because other people are assholes, not because you’re broken.”

“Tell that to my dad,” Dave replied with a bitter, choked laugh, “He was hoping the army would make a man out of me. Instead I’m kissing a mysterious soldier and daydreaming about the next time he’ll touch me.”

“Trust me, Dave,” Klaus murmured with a devilish look on his face, “You’re a _man_. A man I’ll be happy to _touch_ all night long. Anywhere and everywhere you want, baby.”

Dave beamed as they continued to walk along, shoulders bumping with every step.

Klaus was dying to reach out and hold his hand, but he knew he had to resist.

“I,” Dave began awkwardly, suddenly looking deeply embarrassed, “have never…been with a man. At all. You’re literally the first guy I’ve even kissed.”

Klaus nearly melted at how sweet and nervous Dave seemed.

Even though it had been, admittedly, very long since his own first time sleeping with a man, he remembered how scary it was. How inadequate he felt.

But Klaus was determined to make Dave’s first time nothing like that.

He was going to make Dave feel safe and protected. He was going to be certain that the other soldier was enjoying himself.

Klaus wasn’t going to leave Dave feeling dirty and taken advantage of like the first man _he_ ever slept with made _him_ feel.

“Well, there’s a first for everything,” Klaus teased, and Dave smiled, relieved that the other soldier didn’t find him to be too innocent or prudish.

“I don’t expect us to fuck right away,” Klaus reassured, “I would love to get your dick in my mouth, though, if I’m being completely honest with you.”

“Klaus!” Dave gasped with crimson cheeks, though he was certainly turned on by the prospect.

“I just think it would be an honor to give you your first ever blowjob, Davie,” Klaus replied with a joking seriousness that made Dave feel much more relaxed about the whole thing.

“Well, rather, your first from a man. But believe me, my blowjob will blow anybody else’s out of the water.”

Klaus’ arrogance seemed to make Dave nervous.

He glanced around as though afraid someone would jump out of a bush with a video camera and yell, “gotcha!”

Still, he confided in Klaus, however uncomfortably.

“It would be my first blowjob, um, ever. From, uh, from anyone.”

Klaus smiled warmly.

“Oh,” he replied with a shrug, “I see. Then I’ll just have to make it extra special.”

Dave looked up from the ground in surprise; he wasn’t expecting Klaus to react so casually.

“You…don’t care? That I’m a virgin?” Dave asked, whispering the last part like it was the most shameful thing in the world.

“Of course I don’t. Do you care that I’m a whore?” Klaus replied with a smirk, though it was clearly hiding a genuine, painful self-hatred.

“A _whore_? Don’t call yourself that,” Dave admonished instantly.

“But…well, I sort of am one,” Klaus murmured hesitantly, terrified to share that part of his life with someone like Dave, “Or, rather, was one.”

Klaus continued anxiously, “I’ve slept with a lot of men. E-even when I was young. I needed drugs and they gave them to me. You know, as long as I let them fuck me.”

Dave flinched at his wording, though Klaus thought he was flinching in disgust.

Panicked, he backtracked, “If you’re uncomfortable with this thing between us, now, I completely understand. I’m sure this is so unattractive to you—”

Dave stopped him with a gentle, sad smile and a hand on his shoulder.

“It’s okay,” he promised, making Klaus feel like he could breathe again, “You were an addict and you felt desperate. It’s okay. I’m not here to judge you. After all, you’ve never once judged me.”

“Except for your taste in music, which is truly a nightmare, sweetheart,” Klaus cut in with a joke, desperately trying to move on from the sensitive topic.

Dave rolled his eyes fondly before quietly asking, “When you said you were young, Klaus, how young did you mean?”

The older soldier swallowed hard and tried to find a way to escape such a question. Dave would never respect him if he knew the answer.

“Thirteen, I think,” Klaus finally managed to whisper.

“I know,” he continued before Dave could even say anything, “I know, Dave. _Please_ don’t say anything. I know I’m a slut, I just…don’t want to think about it.”

Dave seemed horrified, but not for the reasons Klaus expected.

“Jesus, how old were the men?” he asked with a genuine fear for young Klaus, even though all of those things had already happened. They couldn’t be changed. 

No reason for Dave to get upset.

“I don’t know,” Klaus admitted, “Some in their twenties, others in their thirties and forties. Dave, you need to understand that before I came here, I wasn’t a good person.”

“You’re the one who’s not a good person?” Dave repeated in shock, “Klaus, they’re the bad people! You were a literal child. A forty-year-old should never even look at a thirteen-year-old kid, let alone sleep with one!”

Dave looked like he could kill someone, and if one of the men who took advantage of Klaus were standing right there, he probably would have.

Dave, seeming unbearably sad for him, murmured softly, “You can’t blame yourself for their shit. It’s all on those fucking pricks, not you.”

Klaus, with tears in his eyes, desperately took hold of Dave’s hand and asked pleadingly, “You think so?”

“Klaus, honey, I _know_ so,” he replied gently with a sympathetic smile.

Klaus couldn’t help but smile at the pet name.

“When my dad found out what I was doing…” the older soldier admitted quietly before trailing off.

Dave could see the shift in Klaus from playful to intensely sad. 

“When my dad found out what I was doing,” Klaus started again, “he got so mad at me. He said I was pathetic. His biggest disappointment. He locked me up, all alone in the dark, because he knew it would make me crazy.”

Dave wasn’t sure what Klaus meant by that last part, but he knew it was traumatic enough to make him look so completely terrified.

“I think your dad is an asshole,” Dave commiserated gently, “and I don’t think you should take anything he says seriously. Because I see that you’re strong. And I’m proud of you.”

Klaus let out a small laugh that sounded more like a sob before pulling Dave into his arms and giving him a massive hug.

“Oh, Dave, where did you learn to be so _good_?” Klaus asked.

The question was simultaneously rhetorical and completely serious. He genuinely did not understand how someone could be so kind, especially to him.

Dave simply shrugged, though the compliment made him proud and Klaus was glad to make him feel such a way.

“Fuck your dad, and those guys from your past, and fuck my insecurities,” Dave said suddenly, surprising Klaus with his language, “Let’s have fun. I want to get drunk and kiss you more and maybe let you give me a blowjob and maybe even give you one back.”

“Jesus, Davie, don’t threaten me with a good time,” Klaus replied, his tears forgotten and replaced with a smile that made his jaw ache, not that he minded.

“I’m sorry for accidentally making everything all serious,” Dave said quietly once they could finally see the bar.

“Oh, I’ll be serious with you any day, lovie,” Klaus admitted.

He then took Dave by the hand and dragged him to their night of fun.

“But, Davie, I think now it’s time for you and me to drink and dance and makeout in the bathroom. Aren’t you glad you have me to take you on such sophisticated dates, my dear?”

Dave giggled, frowning once they had to let go of each other’s hands.

Still, he was excited to spend the night with Klaus, and to spend it as his, well, his _something_. More than just a buddy, which was beyond thrilling for Dave who had only ever dreamed of a guy actually being interested in him.

“A date?” Dave whispered before they entered the building.

He simply couldn’t help himself. The word meant something to the younger soldier, and he wanted to know just what it meant to Klaus.

“Yes, a date, silly boy,” Klaus replied with a grin, “Believe it or not, I very much like you, my little Texas cowboy.”

Dave appeared to shudder at the other soldier’s words and his smile seemed to grow impossibly wide.

“I like you, too,” Dave responded like a nervous schoolboy with a crush.

The feeling was both embarrassing and completely exhilarating.

“God knows why, but I won’t push my luck by questioning it,” Klaus said, self-deprecating as always.

Dave chose to ignore the comment, just this once, because poor Klaus had already been through enough emotional crap for one night.

It was time to forget about the world for a while.

As Klaus and Dave passed through the entrance of the bar, two soldiers from their unit brushed past, slamming harshly into Klaus as they went.

They jostled him so much that he fell into Dave’s side rather roughly.

“Hey!” Dave yelled, stopping them with a frown, “Apologize. You almost knocked him to the ground.”

Klaus would be lying if he said that he wasn’t a little turned on seeing Dave defend him like that, but he was also a bit worried.

“Come on, Dave,” Klaus urged softly, “It doesn’t matter. It was probably an accident.”

“Yeah, not an accident,” the larger soldier said with a casual shrug, clearly pissing Dave off even more.

He was sick of the soldiers who gave Klaus a hard time simply because he was smaller than them or a bit more eccentric.

They had no right to treat him like shit, according to Dave.

Klaus didn’t mind all that much; he was used to being shoved around by his own family.

“Why are you like this, Pat?” Dave asked with an annoyed look on his face, “I mean, seriously, just leave him alone.”

The two men laughed, which Klaus couldn’t really understand. Nothing was particularly funny.

“Why are _you_ hanging around with that fairy, queer fuck, Katz?” the other soldier replied with a sneer, “Is he your little boyfriend?”

Klaus rolled his eyes, though he was afraid for Dave.

Klaus himself was used to homophobic slurs but Dave wasn’t.

What if he panicked and stopped talking to Klaus altogether? He wouldn’t blame him for wanting to protect his image.

“I know you’re _desperate_ to suck me off, Harrison,” Klaus mocked with a careful smirk, “But that’s no reason to lose your shit on Dave over there.”

Klaus knew that the one thing homophobes hated the most was being accused of being gay.

Pat Harrison was no exception.

He looked as though his head was going to explode, which was honestly, pretty satisfying.

“Don’t call him names like that,” Dave insisted fiercely.

The look on his face was frankly, a little scary.

Klaus felt his heart begin to race at the way the handsome soldier defended him. No had ever bothered to protect him like that.

“Oh? And what are you gonna do about it?” Harrison taunted cruelly.

Dave glared at him before threatening, “I don’t think you want to find out.”

“Let’s go, Klaus. We don’t need to waste our time with this _bullshit_ ,” Dave spat furiously.

Harrison, annoyingly interested in the way Klaus and Dave were interacting with each other, seemed to pick up on something between them.

“Hold on a second, Katz. Are you a faggot, too?” he asked with a menacing laugh and that was the final straw for Klaus.

Harrison could harass him all he wanted, but bringing Dave into it? That was unacceptable.

“Jesus Christ, Harrison, I hate to break it to you, sweetie, but neither of us is interested,” Klaus responded with a satisfied smirk.

Dave laughed, which made Klaus’ heart soar. He wasn’t about to let a couple of douchebags ruin their night.

Klaus was about to turn around and continue with his plans, but Harrison grabbed him by the collar and drew him so close he could feel the irate soldier’s boozy breath on his face.

“Fuck you, Hargreeves, you cocksucking freak,” he hissed in his face.

“Get your fucking hands off him!” Dave shouted, eyes flashing with rage.

Harrison let Klaus go with a shrug and a shit eating grin.

“You better watch you back, princess,” he murmured before patting Klaus on the back, causing him to jump, “Because, Hargreeves, if I catch you checking me out in the shower, I’ll fucking rip your throat out.”

Dave was clearly boiling over and when Pat Harrison threatened the life of the man he was falling for, he lost it.

Dave surged forward and punched Harrison in the face.

Klaus was stunned; he had absolutely no idea what to do other than throw himself between the two men and try to calm Dave down.

“Threaten him again, Pat, and I swear to god you’ll get more than a black eye!” the younger soldier yelled, though he backed off once he saw Klaus standing right in front of him.

“It’s okay,” Klaus said quietly with a soft smile, “I’m fine. See? No need to worry about some asshole, yeah?”

Dave took a deep breath and nodded, however reluctantly.

“Hey, Harrison?” Klaus called innocently over his shoulder, secretly pleased to see his left eye swelling grotesquely, “You ever try to touch me or insult Dave again, believe me, you’ll be wishing you were never born. Now why don’t you go back to base so you can jerk yourself off and, hopefully, be in a better mood.”

He then turned to Dave with an affectionate grin.

“Let’s rock and roll, Dallas.”

“Wow, Klaus,” Dave admired quietly as they entered the bar, “that was impressive.”

Klaus laughed, “I’m impressive? What about my knight in shining armor, protecting my honor and shit. That was fucking sexy, I gotta admit.”

“Yeah?” Dave responded with an excited glint in his eye.

Klaus nodded while brushing the tips of his fingers against Dave’s. It wasn’t a long touch and it was almost painfully innocent, but it was electric.

“Yeah, baby,” the older soldier agreed with a chuckle, “Now come dance with me.”

“I don’t know, Klaus,” Dave trailed off nervously, “I’m not a very good dancer.”

Klaus giggled, “Yes you are! Everyone’s a good dancer, they just don’t know it. Come on, Davie, do it for me. I wouldn’t care if you were the worst dancer in the world.”

Dave laughed at the way the older soldier stuck out his bottom lip in a pout.

“You are impossible,” Dave chuckled, though he followed Klaus, nonetheless.

Soul Kitchen started to play and Klaus grinned; he loved that song. And apparently, so did Dave.

“This song is the best, I love The Doors,” Dave admitted as he started to sway back and forth.

“I guess you don’t have the _worst_ taste in music,” Klaus conceded jokingly.

He smiled wide, excited to see a version of Dave that wasn’t so tense and scared all the time.

“I like who I am with you,” Dave murmured in Klaus’ ear, probably getting a little too close, though Klaus would never, _ever_ complain about that.

The older soldier felt his stomach flutter at the idea that anyone could possibly feel like their life was better with him in it.

Truthfully, not one person in his entire life had ever felt that way.

“I always like who you are,” Klaus admitted quietly and suddenly, it felt like everyone else in the room had disappeared.

“If I could kiss you right here and now,” Dave whispered with longing, “I would without question.”

“Believe me, we’ll find somewhere for that,” Klaus mumbled distractedly, wishing he could run his fingers through Dave’s soft, blonde hair.

“Klaus?” Dave said nervously.

“Hmmm?” the other soldier hummed, content just to look at Dave for the rest of the night.

“I wish I’d met you five years ago,” he admitted.

“Well, I’m here now, baby,” Klaus promised, “And I’m not going anywhere.”

From that night forward, Klaus didn’t even look at his time traveling suitcase because he was never going back to 2019.

Not without Dave.

Never, ever without his soldier boy.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! If you liked the story (and feel like it) please leave a like or a comment. It makes me so happy to hear from y'all.


End file.
